Sikh Empire
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The Sikh Empire was a state in the north-western part of the Indian Subcontinent (present-day India and Pakistan) from 1799 to 1849.[1] It consisted of a collection of autonomous Punjabi Sikh Misls, which were governed by Misldars,[2] mainly in the Punjab region.
The Sikh Khalsa armies were loosely and politically linked but strongly bounded together in the cultural and religious spheres. The records for these were kept at capitals Gujranwala (1799-1802) and Lahore & Amritsar (1802-1849).
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History
Ranjit Singh was crowned on April 12, 1801 (to coincide with Baisakhi). Sahib Singh Bedi, a descendant of Guru Nanak Dev, conducted the coronation [3]. Gujranwala served as his capital from 1799. In 1802 he shifted his capital to Lahore & Amritsar. Ranjit Singh rose to power in a very short period, from a leader of a single Sikh misl to finally becoming the Maharaja (Emperor) of Punjab.
There was strong collaboration in defense against foreign incursions such as those initiated by Ahmed Shah Abdali and Nadir Shah. The city of Amritsar was attacked numerous times. Yet the time is remembered by Sikh historians as the "Heroic Century". This is mainly to describe the rise of Sikhs to political power against large odds. The circumstances were hostile religious environment against Sikhs, a tiny Sikh population compared to other religious and political powers, which were much larger in the region than the Sikhs. The military power levels of the Sikh Khalsa Army increased dramatically after 1762, this led to rapid increase in territory and power.
Khalsa Beginnings
The period from 1716 to 1799 was a highly turbulent time politically and militarily in the Punjab. This was caused by the overall decline of the Mughal Empire, the loss of Mughal power in the Punjab was quite swift - as the Mughal power weakened it was challenged again and again by the Sikhs resulting in further loss of territory.[4] This left a power vacuum that was eventually filled by the Punjab Army. The Sikh Khalsa Army grew in the late 18th century, which led to be a Sikh Empire on the Indian Subcontient, and its influence would remain strong throughout the empire's history.
Sikh Empire
The Sikh Empire (from 1801-1849) was formed on the foundations of the Sikh Khalsa Army by Maharaja Ranjit Singh. The Empire extended from Khyber Pass in the west, to Kashmir in the north, to Sindh in the south, and Tibet in the east. The main geographical footprint of the empire was the Punjab. The religious demography of the Sikh Empire was Muslim (60%), Sikh (25%), Hindu (15%),[5].
The foundations of the Sikh Empire, during the Sikh Khalsa Army, could be defined as early as 1707, starting from the death of Aurangzeb and the downfall of the Mughal Empire. The fall of the Mughal Empire provided opportunities for the Sikh army, known as the Dal Khalsa, to lead expeditions against the Mughals and Afghans. This led to a growth of the army, which was split into different Khalsa Armies and then semi-independent misls. Each of these component armies were known as a misl, each controlling different areas and cities. However, in the period from 1762-1799 Sikh rulers of their misls appeared to be coming into their own. The formal start of the Sikh Empire began with the disbandment of the Sikh khalsa Army by the time of Coronation of Maharaja Ranjit Singh in 1801, creating the one unified political Empire. All the misldars who were affiliated with the Khalsa Army were nobility with usually long and prestigious family histories in Punjab's history.[2][6]
[edit] End of Empire
After Maharaja Ranjit Singh's death in 1839, the empire was severely weakened by internal divisions and political mismanagement. This opportunity was used by the British Empire to launch the Anglo-Sikh Wars.
The Battle of Ferozeshah in 1845 marked many turning points, the British encountered the Khalsa Army, opening with a gun-duel in which the Sikhs "had the better of the British artillery". But as the British made advancements, Europeans in their army were especially targeted, as the Sikhs believed if the army "became demoralised, the backbone of the enemy's position would be broken"[7]. The fighting continued throughout the night earning the nickname "night of terrors". The British position "grew graver as the night wore on", and "suffered terrible casualties with every single member of the Governor General's staff either killed or wounded"[8].
British General Sire James Hope Grant recorded: "Truly the night was one of gloom and forbidding and perhaps never in the annals of warfare has a British Army on such a large scale been nearer to a defeat which would have involved annihilation"[8]
The Sikhs ended up recovering their camp, and the British were exhausted. Lord Hardinge sent his son to Mudki with a sword from his Napoleonic campaigns. A note in Robert Needham Cust's diary revealed that the "British generals decided to lay down arms: News came from the Governor General that our attack of yesterday had failed, that affairs were disparate, all state papers were to be destroyed, and that if the morning attack failed all would be over, this was kept secret by Mr.Currie and we were considering measures to make an unconditional surrender to save the wounded..."[8].
However, a series of events of the Sikhs being betrayed by some prominent leaders in the Khalsa Army, led to its downfall. Maharaja Gulab Singh and Dhian Singh, were Hindu Dogras from Jammu, and top Generals of the army: Tej Singh and Lal Singh, who were secretly allied to the British. They supplied important war plans of the Khalsa Army, and provided the British with updated vital intelligence on the Sikh Army dealings, which ended up changing the scope of the war and benefiting the British positions[1][9].
The Sikh Empire was finally dissolved after a series of wars with the British at the end of the Second Anglo-Sikh War in 1849 into separate princely states, and the British province of Punjab that where granted a statehood, and eventually a lieutenant governorship stationed in Lahore as a direct representative of the Royal Crown in London.
Geography
The Sikh Empire was also known as Punjab, the Sikh Raj, and the Khalsa Raj, was a region straddling India and Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. The name of the region "Punjab" or "Panjab", comprises two words "Punj/Panj" and "Ab", translating to "five" and "water" in Persian. When put together this gives a name meaning "the land of the five rivers", coined due to the five rivers that run through the Punjab. Those "Five Rivers" are Beas, Ravi, Sutlej, Chenab and Jhelum, all tributaries of the river Indus, home to the Indus Valley Civilization that perished 3000 years ago. Punjab has a long history and rich cultural heritage. The people of the Punjab are called Punjabis and they speak a language called Punjabi. The following modern day political divisions made up the historical Sikh Empire:
- Punjab region till Multan in south
- Punjab, India
- Punjab, Pakistan
- Haryana, India. Including Chandigarh and Delhi.
- Himachal Pradesh, India
- Kashmir, conquered in 1718, India/Pakistan/China[10][11]
- Khyber Pass, Afghanistan/Pakistan[13]
- Parts of Western Tibet (1841), China[16]
Timeline
- 1707-1716, Creation of Sikh Khalsa Army begins to influence the political structure of the Punjab.
- 1762-1767, Ahmed Shah Abdali and the Sikhs battle for control.
- 1763-1774, Charat Singh Sukerchakia, Misldar of Sukerchakia Army established himself in Gujranwala.
- 1773, Ahmed Shah Abdali dies and his son Timur Shah is unable to suppress the Sikhs.
- 1774-1790, Maha Singh, becomes Misldar of the Sukerchakia Army.
- 1762-1801, Sikh Khalsa Army military power rating increases rapidly.
- 1790-1801, Ranjit Singh becomes Misldar of the Sukerchakia Army.
- 1799-1801, transition period neither Confederacy or Empire, in a state of revolution or anarchy.
- 1801 April 12, Coronation of Ranjit Singh as Maharaja, formal beginning of the Sikh Empire.
- 1801 - 27 June 1839, Reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, whose coronation took place in 1801.
- 1801 - 1839, large expansion of the Sikh Empire in land mass spearheaded by the Punjab Army.
- 27 June 1839 - 5 November 1840, Reign of Maharaja Kharak Singh
- 5 November 1840 - 18 January 1841, Chand Kaur was briefly Regent
- 18 January 1841 - 15 September 1843, Reign of Maharaja Sher Singh
- 15 September 1843 - 31 March 1849, Reign of Maharaja Duleep Singh
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